WASHINGTON — Washington state lawmakers have passed a bill to allow human composting, according to CNN.<br /><br />If Governor Jay Inslee decides to sign Senate Bill 5001 into law, it is to take effect on May 1, 2020.<br /><br />Recomposition is the process of turning bodies of deceased humans into soil.<br /><br />Katrina Spade, the CEO of Recompse, a company that wants to build a human composting facility, explained the process to KIRO 7. <br /><br />She said the body is covered in natural materials such as straw or wood chips. Microbes then break down the body into the soil over a period of three to seven weeks.<br /><br />Relatives can then choose to keep the soil in urns, use it to plant trees or spread it on public land in Washington state, according to the Associated Press.<br /><br />CNN quotes the bill's sponsor Senator Jamie Pederson as saying that, "People should have the freedom to determine for themselves how they'd like their body to be disposed of..."
